BUMRAH-KRISHNA Comeback boosts Team India but conundrum over spinners continues

"The key to success is to develop a winning edge.” This quote by Canadian author and motivational speaker Brian Tracy is apt for cricket as well. Every team needs those players who bring an edge to their set up. With the comeback of Jasprit Bumrah and Prasidh Krishna, Team India now has the much needed firepower in their bowling attack. Both put up a fine display of fast bowling in the Ireland T20 series and helped India to a 2-0 series win. While fans feel relieved with the pace battery shaping up nicely, the conundrum over the spin combination continues as Indian selectors picked only a trio of left arm spinners for Asia Cup!

It was expected to be an easy outing for Team India in Ireland and the results were on the same lines. But the series was keenly watched for the much-anticipated comeback of pace spearhead, Jasprit Bumrah. He was named the captain of the squad and turned in terrific spells of 2 for 24 and 2 for 15 in the two matches. While the third match was abandoned due to rain, the selectors had enough reasons to smile and pick him for the Asia Cup team. The absence of the 29-year-old ‘Boom Boom’ has been a critical factor in India’s losses in major competitions during the past year. A fully-fit Bumrah now implies that India will go into the World Cup with its biggest matchwinner adding a sharp edge to Rohit Sharma’s bowling armoury.

The Ireland trip also saw Prasidh Krishna making an impressive return. Before his injury he was seen as the answer to India’s middle over woes where they had failed to pick up wickets in the last few years. Against Ireland, Prasidh cranked up at high pace and bowled at full tilt to ease any worries around his full recovery. In the two matches he not only hurried the Irish batsmen but and also got awkward bounce out of very good batting pitches. He took 2 for 29 and 2 for 32 in his spells in the couple of matches and looked all set to be India’s X-factor for Asia Cup and then World Cup. His height and bounce provide a special dimension to India’s pace battery. With Bumrah, Shami, Siraj and Krishna all fit, India could have a formidable pace attack that could trouble the best teams in the ODI World Cup.

While the pace arsenal is getting into good shape, the spin attack is in a bit of a mess. For the Asia Cup, Chahal, Ashwin and Washington Sundar are all missing. Instead, India has three left arm spinners – Jadeja, Axar and Kuldeep. In particular, not giving any offie a chance seems a tactical blunder that could cost India heavily in games with teams which have a number of left-hand batsmen. There were murmurs that with his handy batting, Ashwin could figure in the Asia Cup squad but it wasn’t to be so.

The series also saw the emergence of Rinku Singh and Ruturaj Gaikwad on the international stage. Both continued their IPL heroics. In the first match Ruturaj remained unbeaten on 19 as the rain cut off play and India won on D/L calculations. But in the second game he hit 58 off 43 balls to showcase his worth in the Indian setup. Meanwhile though he didn’t bat in the first game, Rinku, hit 38 off 21 balls with 3 sixes and was instrumental in India getting to a challenging total in the second game.

Next up for India is the Asia Cup challenge. There is special buzz over the return of Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul. Both could provide answers to India’s batting woes at No 4 and 5. KL Rahul’s fitness is still a worry and if he doesn’t play the first few games, Ishan Kishan gets more match time and an opportunity to cement his place in the team. The return of Rohit and Virat after a brief break will help Team India fine-tune its World Cup preparations. Their being in form is most critical for India’s batting might revolves around these two superstars.

With injury concerns now slowly fading and key players returning to the squad, India has a far better chance of success at Asia Cup. Team India will be mighty keen to do well not only to avenge their losses in the previous Asia Cup but also to get into a positive mind-frame ahead of the World Cup. In that respect, the next few games are important as India finetunes its battingbowling combinations to gun for World Cup glory once again after the 2011 victory!

THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL

Siddhaarth Mahan The writer is a specialist on Sports and Cinema who works as an actor in the Hindi film industry